Please suggest some cool books!

Japanese Language Reading
#1

Hello all. I am hoping to put together an order from Kinokuniya soon, and would like some suggestions for native reading material. I’m probably around N3 level or maybe a little higher.

Some things I’ve liked so far:

ＢＡＲレモン・ハ−ト - This is a Manga series that takes place at a bar. Maybe sort of like an equivalent of the 深夜食堂 television series. I like it because it has a sort of slice of life feel.

５秒後に意外な結末 - These are short stories (meant to be read in 5 minutes by native readers) with a surprise ending to each story. I like them because each story is nice and short and has a different setting, so you get a sort of a unified group of vocabulary with each one. This series was recommend in a video by WK user Leebo some time back.

コンビニ人間 - Many of you will recognize this one from one of the book clubs here. I enjoyed the slice of life story.

ひきだしにテラリウム - I found this one to be really enjoyable. I’m not sure what you would call it. It’s sort of like a really stylized manga with philosophical themes. Each story is a separate world of wonder.

I’m looking for stuff aimed at adults. Slice of life, philosophical/fantasy themes, music or anything really interesting.

Any suggestions?

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#2

If you check out the tadoku thread, there’s lots of reviews and also lots of information about how to find reviews from forum users and suggestions for books outside of the forums. You can find them at the bottom of the second post, after the huge tables:

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#3

Chances are you may already know about them, but the author of ひきだしにテラリウム, Ryoko Kui (九井諒子) has other manga that are all excellent.

竜のかわいい七つの子 is, I believe, the same kind of thing as terrarium (I haven’t gotten to terrarium yet, but I’ve read this!) and it’s lovely.

And Dungeon Meshi is my favorite manga bar none! Fun fantasy that starts out slice of life / light adventure and develops seamlessly into some really elaborate world building (and oh dang! Looking this up let me know the next volume has a cover!!)

#4

Thanks a lot to both of you. After just two replies to my post, I am finding myself having to narrow down my list of books to order. :smile:

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#5

Oh and if you’re interested in keeping track of your books in public while also catching a glimpse of others’ books, a lot of us hang out at Bookmeter as well :slight_smile:

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#6

I’m slowly and lazily reading コンビニ人間, but I find it very challenging. I’m using a Kindle so I can look words up quickly, and that helps a lot. The grammar is mostly fine - it’s really just a matter of vocab. There is also the option of pre-studying the vocab lists from the reading club here. I might do that when I get the time.

Thanks for the other suggestions, though, and sorry I don’t have any to add in return. the 5分 series looks good, as they have some less fantasy-oriented versions I might check out. And BARレモン is up my alley :).

#7

If you’re looking at maybe pre-studying vocab, I’d recommend https://koohi.cafe/, which has vocab lists for a lot of manga, anime, and books (including コンビニ人間) and an SRS system built in.

I just started using it for a light novel I picked up (魔法高校の劣等生) that’s way above my current vocab knowledge and I’m liking it so far.

Edit: Koohi’s library is also a good place to look for books, if you sort by reading difficulty level (the little skull icon).

#8

I’d tried this site a while back, and don’t think there was an easy way to export the vocab - it was designed to be added one by one into its own SRS, which is a no-go for me.

#9

Well, it does have an export function now (exports to a tab-delimited CSV), if that makes a difference. :grin:

#10

Can you export directly from generation, or do you still need to add words individually?

#11

Good question. I just tried it and it looks like you have to add each word to the word list from “Generate” but you can then export straight from the Manage list (i.e. you don’t have to quiz on them and add them to the SRS lessons section under Practice).

You could probably ask the creator on the Koohi thread if there’s another way.

#12

Thanks! I’m thinking it is easier for now to either use the lists from the book club, or export my words with context sentences from the Kindle. The latter option does not include definitions, unfortunately, but having full sentences and figuring it out as I review might be a good way to go. Or not. I haven’t thought that out yet.

#13

I just registered on Book meter.

But I need friends. :frowning:

Please be my friend.

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#14

Yeah, if you already have a preferred system that makes sense. I just wanted to share Koohi since I only recently discovered it myself and I know others might not be familiar with it.

Do you have a process for exporting words with context sentences from Kindle that you wouldn’t mind sharing?

Most of my current Japanese reading list is hard copies, but I have a few on my Kindle that I plan to get to soon.

#15

Yes, just plug it in and drag :slight_smile:

https://fluentcards.com/kindle

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#16

I have become your friend :slight_smile:

or at least followed you on bookmeter

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#17

I also added you!

And @Ditto20 as well

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#18

A few titles I read recently that I think are around N3 level:

町田くんの世界 - Manga about everyday life of a high school student who lives with his mom and a lot of younger siblings. He’s not particularly good at anything, but he’s really kind and always thinking of others. (Not the greatest summary, but it’s basically a feel-good story)

劇場版ポケットモンスター キミにきめた! - This is the book version of the 2017 Pokemon movie. It’s a little more difficult read, but the beginning is basically the original Pokemon story (i.e. from Season 1, Episode 1) so it’s easy to get into if you’re a Pokemon fan. And who isn’t a Pokemon fan? :laughing:

#19

Aria
Yuru Camp
Flying Witch

All the book clubs.

Except maybe The Girl who Leapt Through Time.

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#20

Speaking of which, did anyone post the comparison of book club picks?